Jurij Fedynskyj
Encyclopedia
Jurij Fedynskyj is a Ukrainian-American folk singer, kobzar
and bandurist
as well as a composer, producer, luthier, sound engineer, cultural activist and educator.
Fedynskyj was born in the United States
, but moved to his ancestral homeland, to Kiev
, Ukraine
after the Fall of the Soviet Union to practice the kobzar tradition and to form musical ensembles dedicated to traditional Ukrainian music.
He performs on the fretless kobza, a reconstruction of Ostap Veresai
's original instrument; the traditional kobzar bandura, a reconstruction of Hnat Honcharenko
's instrument; the basolia
, or three string smallish folk cello; the bubon
, or large Hutzul bass drum; as well as the modern piano, electric guitar
, and drums.
Initially, Fedynskyj studied classical piano under Henry Doskey as well as the modern and traditional bandura under Julian Kytasty
. He is one of the founding members of the Experimental Bandura Trio, along with Julian Kytasty and Michael Andrec
. Fedynskyj studied with the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus
in Detroit, USA. He collaborated with the Ukrainian ska-punk band Haydamaky
. He is the founder of the Kiev based ensembles Karpatiyany (along with Valeriy Hlyadunets) Run Through the Jungle
, and Khoreya Kozatskiy (along with Taras Kompanichenko
). He is a member of the Kobzar Guild
.
Fedynskyj is also a maker of early music instruments used for vocal accompaniment, specific to Ukrainian culture, such as the Veresai kobza, kobzar bandura, panska bandura
, Mamayivska kobza
, lira
, torban
, and husli. He conducts expeditions in search of surviving instruments, creating an archive. He concertizes/lectures extensively throughout Ukraine both solo and with his ensembles.
Kobzar
A Kobzar was an itinerant Ukrainian bard who sang to his own accompaniment.-Tradition:Kobzars were often blind, and became predominantly so by the 1800s...
and bandurist
Bandurist
A bandurist is a person who plays the Ukrainian plucked string instrument known as the bandura.-Types of performers:There are a number of different types of bandurist who differ in their paricular choice of instrument, the specific repertoire they play and manner in which they approach their...
as well as a composer, producer, luthier, sound engineer, cultural activist and educator.
Fedynskyj was born in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, but moved to his ancestral homeland, to Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
after the Fall of the Soviet Union to practice the kobzar tradition and to form musical ensembles dedicated to traditional Ukrainian music.
He performs on the fretless kobza, a reconstruction of Ostap Veresai
Ostap Veresai
Ostap Mykytovych Veresai , was a renowned minstrel and kobzar from the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire...
's original instrument; the traditional kobzar bandura, a reconstruction of Hnat Honcharenko
Hnat Honcharenko
Hnat Tykhonovych Honcharenko was one of the most renowned Ukrainian kobzars of the Kharkiv oblast of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.- Biography :...
's instrument; the basolia
Basolia
The basolia is a Ukrainian folk instrument of the bowed string family similar to the cello although slightly larger and not as sophisticated in construction. The basolia was usually homemade and of very rough construction. Sometimes the soundboard was sewn to the body rather than glued...
, or three string smallish folk cello; the bubon
Bubon
The bubon is a Ukrainian percussive folk instrument, of the tambourine family. The bubon consists of a wooden ring with a diameter of up to which has a skin tightened over one or sometimes both sides...
, or large Hutzul bass drum; as well as the modern piano, electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, and drums.
Initially, Fedynskyj studied classical piano under Henry Doskey as well as the modern and traditional bandura under Julian Kytasty
Julian Kytasty
Julian Kytasty is a Ukrainian-American composer, singer, kobzar, bandurist, flute player and conductor. He was born January 23 1958 in Detroit, Michigan, in the family of refugees....
. He is one of the founding members of the Experimental Bandura Trio, along with Julian Kytasty and Michael Andrec
Michael Andrec
Michael Andrec is a Ukrainian-American bandurist and composer in a variety of styles, primarily for the bandura. He is an active member of Julian Kytasty's New York Bandura Ensemble, and the Experimental Bandura Trio.-References:...
. Fedynskyj studied with the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus
Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus
The Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus is a semi-professional male choir which accompanies itself with the multi-stringed Ukrainian folk instrument known as the bandura...
in Detroit, USA. He collaborated with the Ukrainian ska-punk band Haydamaky
Haydamaky
Haydamaky may refer to:* Haidamakas, an 18th-century Ukrainian rebellion against the Polish nobility* Haydamaky...
. He is the founder of the Kiev based ensembles Karpatiyany (along with Valeriy Hlyadunets) Run Through the Jungle
Run Through the Jungle
"Run Through the Jungle" is a 1970 rock song recorded by the North American band Creedence Clearwater Revival.-History:The song was written by the Creedence's lead singer, guitarist and songwriter, John Fogerty. It was included on their 1970 album Cosmo's Factory, the group's fifth album...
, and Khoreya Kozatskiy (along with Taras Kompanichenko
Taras Kompanichenko
Таras Коmpanichenkо is an influential kobzar, bandurist, lira player, composer and singer-songwriter. He is an active member in the Kiev Kobzar Guild as well as in the Early Music ensembles "Chorea Kozacka" and "Sarmatica"...
). He is a member of the Kobzar Guild
Kobzarskyi Tsekh
Kobzarskyi Tsekh - literaly "Kobzar guild" - is an organization of kobzars, which existed from the 17th century in Ukraine.Blind itinerant musicians, known as kobzars and lirnyks, organized themselves into guilds along the same lines as professional craftsmen...
.
Fedynskyj is also a maker of early music instruments used for vocal accompaniment, specific to Ukrainian culture, such as the Veresai kobza, kobzar bandura, panska bandura
Bandura
Bandura refers to a Ukrainian plucked string folk instrument. It combines elements of a box zither and lute, as well as its lute-like predecessor, the kobza...
, Mamayivska kobza
Cossack Mamay
Cossack Mamay is a Ukrainian folkloric hero, one of standard characters in traditional Ukrainian itinerant puppet theater, the Vertep. Mamay eventually became the national personification of Ukraine and Ukrainians.-Review:...
, lira
Lirnyk
The lirnyk was an itinerant Ukrainian musician who performed religious, historical and epic songs to the accompaniment of a lira, the Ukrainian version of the hurdy-gurdy....
, torban
Torban
The torban is a Ukrainian musical instrument that combines the features of the Baroque Lute with those of the psaltery. The Тorban differs from the more common European Bass lute known as the Theorbo in that it had additional short treble strings strung along the treble side of the soundboard. It...
, and husli. He conducts expeditions in search of surviving instruments, creating an archive. He concertizes/lectures extensively throughout Ukraine both solo and with his ensembles.
Films
- Comeback 2009 by Serhiy Tsymbal and Nataliya Fitsych; a documentary film on Ukraine's traditional music revival, focusing on the work of Mykhailo Tafiychuk, Drevo (Poltava), Natalka Polovynka, and Jurij Fedynskyj. Nominated for European film awards, Prix EuropaPrix EuropaPrix Europa is the Europe's largest annual tri-medial festival and competition. Its open juries sample and select the best television-, radio- and online productions of each year...
, Berlin, 2009.
- Kobzar 2008 featured on Zakryta Zona; a documentary film on Jurij Fedynskyj's cultural activity in Ukraine, focusing on his work reviving the kobzar tradition, his musical projects, and musical instrument researching and making. Featured at film festival LevLevLev may refer to:*Lev and LEV are common shortenings for Leviticus, the third book of the Hebrew Bible and of the Torah.*Lev means "heart" in Hebrew.*It is also a Hebrew name, as in the Bar Lev Line....
, 2009, L'viv.
Recordings
- Three Kindred Brothers 2009. Reconstruction of Ukrainian kobzar dumyDuma (epic)A Duma is a sung epic poem which originated in Ukraine during the Hetmanate Era in the sixteenth century...
(sung epic poems) and dances, derived from wax cyllinderPhonograph cylinderPhonograph cylinders were the earliest commercial medium for recording and reproducing sound. Commonly known simply as "records" in their era of greatest popularity , these cylinder shaped objects had an audio recording engraved on the outside surface which could be reproduced when the cylinder was...
recordings from folkloric expeditions conducted by Filaret KolessaFilaret KolessaFilaret Mykhailovych Kolessa was a Ukrainian ethnographer, folklorist, composer, musicologist and literary critic. He was a member of the Shevchenko Scientific Society from 1909, The Free Ukrainian Academy of Sciences from 1929, and the founder of Ukrainian ethnographic musicology.- Biography...
, Lesya UkrainkaLesya UkrainkaLarysa Petrivna Kosach-Kvitka better known under her literary pseudonym Lesya Ukrainka , was one of Ukraine's best-known poets and writers and the foremost woman writer in Ukrainian literature. She also was a political, civil, and female activist....
, and Mykola LysenkoMykola LysenkoMykola Vitaliiovych Lysenko was a Ukrainian composer, pianist, conductor and ethnomusicologist.- Biography :Lysenko was born in Hrynky, Kremenchuk Povit, Poltava Governorate, the son of Vitaliy Romanovich Lysenko . From childhood he became very interested in the folksongs of Ukrainian peasants and...
, of the kobzars Mykhailo KravchenkoMykhailo KravchenkoMykhailo Stepanovych Kravchenko was regarded as one of the most outstanding kobzars of Poltava province of the late 19th early 20th century.- Biography :...
, Ostap Veresai, and Hnat Honcharenko, as performed on reconstructions of their original instruments
- Khoreya Kozatskiy 2008. Creative reconstructions of Ukrainian early music specific to different historic eras such as Middle-age, Renaissance, Baroque, Romantic
- Karpatiyany 2004. World-music setting to Ukrainian folk music. Modern instruments such as electric guitar, electric fiddleElectric violinAn electric violin is a violin equipped with an electronic output of its sound. The term most properly refers to an instrument purposely made to be electrified with built-in pickups, usually with a solid body...
, bass, drums combined with Ukrainian tradition folk instruments such as tsymbalyTsymbalyThe tsymbaly is the Ukrainian version of the hammer dulcimer. It is a chordophone made up of a trapezoidal box with metal strings strung across it. The tsymbaly is played by striking two beaters against the strings....
, sopilkySopilkaSopilka is a name applied to a variety of woodwind instruments of the flute family used by Ukrainian folk instrumentalists. Sopilka most commonly refers to a fife made of a variety of materials and has six to ten finger holes...
, kobza, bandura, drymba
- Run Through the Jungle 2004. American country-blues standards
- Jurij Fedynskyj bandurist-composer 2000. Modern composition for solo modern bandura. Inspired by the experimental work of Zinoviy ShtokalkoZinoviy ShtokalkoZinoviy Shtokalko . Amongst the more renowned performers of bandura art, one of the prominent is that of bandurist virtuoso Zinoviy Shtokalko.-Biography:...
, French Impressionists, and folk dance rhythms
- Experimental Bandura Trio 1998. experimental composition for modern bandura trio